Is Anyone a DVC Member?

[dopeylover]

My husband and I are very lightly considering becoming members in the next year. It seems like an awful lot of money, yet it's filled w/ places we'll probably go anyway...HOWEVER...It seems like all the rooms are SO big, and right now it's just my husband and I. Are we paying a lot of money for a room that's too big for us? Can we stay anywhere in WDW, or will we always have to be in the same 5 places?

Just wanted to get some info. from people who AREN'T trying to sell this to me. :animwink:

 

[yankspy]

You might wish to post this in the DVC forum so that you will get more responses. As far as membership, if you like the deluxe hotels then I would say it is worth it. You can saty in the moderates with DVC but I would not recommend it because you will pay with points through the nose. You can also use it for other non-WDW destinations. As far as the big rooms. The studios would be your best bet unless you want to have a full kitchen. There are many DVC experts on this site who could give you more details. I would suggest doing the seminar the next time that you are there. If you any specific questions feel free to ask. We have been members at the Beach Club for about six years now and we love it.

 

[DisneyPhD]

It is a lot of money upfront and is a big decision. There are lots of threads on DVC and whether it's worth it so take a look in the DVC Forum. As yankspy said, the studios are about the same size as regular hotel rooms but with one bed and a sleeper sofa. There's also a small kitchenette with microwave, bar sink and fridge. If you typically go every year and stay in moderates or deluxe then DVC is something you should consider. Feel free to ask more questions.:wave:

 

[redkoala245]

I don't really recommend it because they give you select hotels to stay at. I tried to join DVC but the people there haven't replied it to us. Another reason I am not a DVC member is because my family all like the GF and that is not a DVC hotel. If you like the hotels near the MK or non DVC hotels I would stick with that.

 

[Mickifan17]

I have been a member for 14 years and about a year ago, I added on more points. I LOVE IT. I actually owned it before I was married or had kids and I think it's the best thing I ever did. You CAN use it at any Disney resort, but the amount of points you'll use are alot. If you enjoy going to there on vacation and go often, you'll get plenty of use out of it.

I've actually been able to use my points in such a way that I was able to make 4 seperate trips there in a 12 month period. Even if it was just for 4 days with my son. I was able to get my Disney fix. :wave:

 

[mrerk]

I don't really recommend it because they give you select hotels to stay at. I tried to join DVC but the people there haven't replied it to us. Another reason I am not a DVC member is because my family all like the GF and that is not a DVC hotel. If you like the hotels near the MK or non DVC hotels I would stick with that.

If you need a referral PM me. My DVC guide is excellent and very low pressure.

 

[cemeb4dk]

dopeylover:

My wife and I bought into the DVC on our honeymoon. That was six years ago. We had no idea if we would have kids or even still be married (lol). But we are happily still married and have a 2 1/2 year old daughter now. And in our marriage we have spent alot of money of silly things, but this was our best investment ever! You will have the nay sayers and number crunchers that it is or isn't worth it. But to my family it has more than paid for it self. It works if you like ot go to Disney and stay at deluxe hotels and average about 10 nights a year there. If you only want to go once every 4-5 years and are happy at POP, it may not be worth it. One of the others things is that you kinda have to be a planner, its hard to decide to get away for a quick weekend, because there may or may not be rooms available. But if you plan your trips 11 months or so out, you should be fine.

We are going over Thanksgiving this year staying in a studioat the Beachclub (home resort) for 10 nights. The other day I thought I woudl see what it would cost for me to do the trip if I was to pay rack rates, and it was over $5300.00 with the meal and 10 day hopper passes. Now granted we paymonthly dues, and i still have to pay for my meal plan and we have annual passes that as a member you save $100 off of. So needless to say I am getting the same trip for $750 being a member, because I need to pay for my meal plan and we already have annual passes. But even if we didn't have annuals yet we are still under $1500 or so. Now yes we did have the initial buy in and the monthly dues. But for my family that money is long gone and spent. Its easier for us to come up with $60 a month for dues that to try and save $7000 for a vacation. By only having to save spending money and money for food, we are able to go much more often, because we don't have to save such large amounts of money. And needless to say whenever we go on vacations Disney or not the largest expense on a trip is usually the hotel which you are in the least amount of time. I have always hated to pay such high amounts for hotels that we are barely in.

So needless to say DVC is not for everyone, but its a perfect fit for my family.

 

[gojoe]

Home Resort

For us it was about a home resort. We chose Boardwalk, for many of our own reason, to do this we purchased from the Time Share Store. Less money and we wanted Boardwalk for our home resort (11 mth. booking window). We get a studio when it's the 2 of us and a 1 bedroom when we travel with the kids. We use to do the economy resorts with the kids and moderate when we traveled with out. We figured how many points we would need and ran the numbers. Break even. Here is the thing, we were at a luxury resort for the same money plus some member discount made it worth it. Do the math for you and remember home resort benefits.

 

[partyoffour]

I am glad u posted this my hubby and i have been going round and round about joining. We would need 300 points so the cost is a little crazy. But I guess in the long run to me it is worth it. I am still trying to get hubby to join in with how I feel.

 

[DVC Mike]

We are very happy DVC members. I think it's best value is staying at DVC resorts.

 

[chipndale76]

We are a family of four, we purchased the DVC about 2 1/2 years ago. If the room size is an issue, you can always opt to stay in a studio, they aren't huge.

 

[Kath-n-me]

We've been DVC members for just over a year. A great investment as we vacation at WDW often. The choices in room sizes to fit you needs, member discounts,such as annual pass renwal, are a nice benefit. In room laundry, in accomodations bigger than a studio (1,2,bedroom & Grand villa).
Overall, the only regret we have is we didn't do it while our kids were younger, as they are all grown now. We still go, with or without them

 

[Phonedave]

The DVC is great if ....

You plan to use it at DVC resorts. Yes, you can use your points for other things - cruises, other trip, other Disney resorts. However using points for these reasons is REALLY cost foolish.

Sure, its a nice option to have, and some year you feel like doing something besides Disney, its a nice option to have, but dont plant on doing it all the time. If you do, the there are better options than the DVC.

The basic advice they give - if you go once a year on average, and stay for a week at a time (or more accurately, on weekdays, as opposed to weekends) is a pretty good guideline.

A studio room is a good size for two people. It is not "super large" Heck, I like a one bedroom for me and my two kids.

-dave

 

[deWild]

I have grandparents that have been members since summer of '92, and they absouletely love having their membership. Over the years they bought enough points to have a family reunion and everyone that went enjoyed the stay in the Beach Club. A tip if you're staying about a week in a DVC room vs. a standard hotel room is that you get a kitchen. It helps A LOT if you don't want to eat cereal or spend money to go out to breakfast everyday.

The other thing my grandparents are always raving about is that they can use their points worldwide. Supposedly a few years back they were able to use their points to spend a few days up on Mackinac Island at the Grand Hotel. I think this is also a huge advantage.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Its a decision from the heart, not the head. No matter the window dressing its time share.

 

[djpoore94]

DH & I are in the process of purchasing a resale through the Timeshare Store. So far the process has been very smooth and fast. We are already planning what we can do next year with our points! For us it was a matter of WDW is our favorite place to vacation, but there are other options too if we want to go someplace new (I want to go to Hilton Head and see some things near there)! We made our decision fairly quickly in terms of days spent discussing, but DH looked at every angle and did lots of figuring on cost etc. We figure if we end up not liking it we can sell in a few years, yeah, we'll take a loss, but we'll never know if we like it if we don't try it!

 

[TomHendricks]

We have 300 points and yes, it is a bit expensive but the thing you have to remember is that you can pay it off over 10 years and you get 50 years of vacations.

I am glad u posted this my hubby and i have been going round and round about joining. We would need 300 points so the cost is a little crazy. But I guess in the long run to me it is worth it. I am still trying to get hubby to join in with how I feel.

 

[dopeylover]

Thank you for all the info.! We are still in the decision process...We are thinking we may wait a yr. or so, but we're definitely still interested. Thanks again!:wave:

 

[yankspy]

Its a decision from the heart, not the head. No matter the window dressing its time share.

Well put.

 

[pacochran]

My 2 cents worth is that we bought it in 2003 and love it. We have two children, but are even looking forward to the time when we can go just the two of us also.

You can use your points to stay at any WDW resorts as well as an Disney resort hotels around the world. Two years ago we used our points to stay at AKL which we had a great time, though my kids love the BCV just because of the Storm-a-long Bay swimming area.